The background description includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed invention, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
All publications herein are incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each individual publication or patent application were specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference. Where a definition or use of a term in an incorporated reference is inconsistent or contrary to the definition of that term provided herein, the definition of that term provided herein applies and the definition of that term in the reference does not apply.
People frequently need to have medical needs diagnosed from a distal location, but are either unable or unwilling to travel to a doctor in order to have the medical needs diagnosed. In such situations, a medical doctor needs to travel to the sick person in order to diagnose the person. However, hiring a medical doctor to travel to the bedside of a sick patient is not always feasible or cost-effective, and, unless the doctor is a specialist, the doctor frequently cannot provide adequate bedside care.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,380,296 to Lee teaches an implantable medical device that uses brain state information to activate, de-activate, and/or modify therapy for a patient. The medical device can detect a seizure and can activate an implanted defibrillator to steady the heart of the patient, or even restart the heart of a patient having heart problems. However, many patients either cannot afford, or do not want, a medical device implanted within their body. In addition, Lee's implantable medical device can only diagnose a small number of heart-related illnesses.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,657,756 to Stahmann teaches a system with an implantable internal sensors that sends movement data to an external processing system. A diagnosis processor could then diagnose a disease or disorder based upon the sensor information, which could then be sent to a therapy device, such as a drug delivery device or a nerve stimulation therapy device. Stahmann's system, however, requires a device to be implanted into the system for detailed analysis. Again, many patients either cannot afford, or do not want, a medical device implanted within their body.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,663,106 to Stivoric teaches a system that measures the temperature of a human body non-invasively using skin and ambient temperature sensors. The system can derive and predict a number of physiological and conditional states and events, and a caregiver could program devices that detect certain use-related conditions to deliver medication or other nutrients in response. Stivoric, however, can only predict a limited number of conditions by monitoring the temperature of the patient, and many patients prefer not to ingest medication in response to a detected malady.
Thus, there remains a need for a system and method to improve the detection and treatment of various medical conditions.